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 If passion, experience & leadership count for anything, Michael Gongora will be the next Miami Beach City Commissioner.
Gongora, 39, will face off against Gabrielle Redfern, a 47-year-old transit activist and property manager, for the Miami Beach runoff election for the Group III Commission seat on November 17th.Gongora is an attorney practicing community association law and commercial litigation.
Gongora got his first taste of Beach politics in 2006 when he was elected to serve a one-year term as Commissioner for Miami Beach. As Commissioner, Gongora hit the ground running and immediately created the Beach’s first Green Sustainability Committee. The Committee launched an audit on city energy use that resulted is savings for Miami Beach and its taxpayers and reduced the community’s ecological footprint.
Even before serving at City Hall, Gongora had long worked to make Miami Beach a better place to live. Gongora has served on the Miami Beach Zoning Board of Adjustment, the Design Review Board and the Condominium Reform Task Force. He was also a Special Master over code enforcement prior to his 2006 election. The experience garnered from fulfilling the responsibility of these roles will prove invaluable should Gongora be sworn in as Miami Beach Commissioner.
After loosing his re-election bid in 2007 by only a handful of votes, Gongora could have scampered home with his tail between his legs. But instead he rolled up his sleeves and looked for other ways to serve the community he so loves. Gongora was appointed Chairman of the Environmental Coalition of Miami Beach (ECOMB), served as a member of the Miami-Dade Safe Parks’ Oversight Committee and volunteered at the North Beach Pro Bono Law Clinic, an organization he helped launch in 2006 during his term as president of the Miami Beach Bar Association.
In addition to his vast experience, effective leadership skills and his passion to the betterment of Miami Beach for all citizens, Gongora has proven himself a true friend to the LGBT community. Gongora made history by becoming the first and only openly gay person to win elected office in Miami Beach, befuddling, considering the city is considered a gay Mecca by world travelers and the tourist industry. Gongora is also the only openly gay Hispanic to win elected office in the State of Florida.
Gongora is committed to being a powerful voice for the LGBT community in Miami Beach and throughout Miami-Dade County. During his brief stint as Commissioner, Gongora took the lead in assisting and representing the LGBT community in numerous ways, including leading the charge to adopt Resolution No. 2007-26425, urging the Florida Legislature to abolish the restriction against homosexual adoption contained within the Florida Statutes. The Miami Beach City Commission adopted the measure unanimously on January 17, 2007.
Gongora works closely with the Miami-Dade Gay and Lesbian Chamber of Commerce and he supports many of the organization’s community events and partnerships they have with state and local groups like Equality Florida, the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force and Care Resource. Gongora is often called on to host or sponsor events organized by such community groups as SOBAP (South Beach AIDS Project), GLSEN (Gay, Lesbian & Straight Education Alliance) and the Trevor Project, the nation’s only 24/7 suicide prevention helpline for LGBT youth.
The numerous endorsements of Gongora by local and state politicians are representative of the level of respect and high regard community members have for him. Gongora has recently been endorsed by Alex Fernandez, his opponent in this year’s general election. He has also gotten the nod from outgoing Miami Beach Commissioner Victor Diaz, whose seat Gongora is looking to fill. Joining the ranks of Gongora supporters are State Representative Richard Steinberg and Beach Commissioner Deede Weithorn.
"I am confident the voters will choose my experience and qualifications because it allows me to serve them with effectiveness and integrity,” Gongora told GaySoFla.com
For a City Commissioner who will represent all residents of Miami Beach, select #61 on the Ballot. For more information about early voting or to learn more about the candidate visit http://www.michaelgongora.com/mg/ .
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